Exploring Teachers’ Experiences on the Nature of Mathematics based on their Curricular and Pedagogical Practices: A Phenomenological Inquiry
Laxman Luitel 1 *
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1 Kathmandu University School of Education, NEPAL* Corresponding Author

Abstract

The school mathematics curriculum development process in Nepal is still conventional. Contextualized mathematics teaching and learning has not been the priority of school education of Nepal. Majority of the school mathematics teachers in Nepal still conceptualize the mathematics and mathematics curriculum from the conformist approach. Thus, this paper aims to explore mathematics teachers’ experiences on the nature of mathematics focusing on their curricular and pedagogical practices based on the research question how mathematics teachers experience the nature of mathematical knowledge during their curricular and pedagogical practices. Ernest’s and Luitel’s nature of mathematical knowledge has enabled me to evaluate teachers’ experiences towards the nature of mathematical knowledge and Habermas’s theory of knowledge constitutive interest has guided the research for knowledge and implied others’ concept. The study has relied on the phenomenological approach and reflected the experiences of four mathematics teachers. The paper concludes that mathematics curriculum guided by emancipatory interest as well as practical interest promotes counter-hegemonic vision of teaching and learning mathematics and might develop critical consciousness. Critical consciousness embedded mathematics curriculum helps students and teachers to unpack the cultural nature of mathematics education and taken-for-granted assumptions about teaching and learning through critical pedagogy.

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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Research Article

INT ELECT J MATH ED, Volume 15, Issue 3, October 2020, Article No: em0613

https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/9135

Publication date: 04 Nov 2020

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Article Downloads: 2191

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